좀비, 서구 문화의 전복적 자기반영성 - 조지 로메로의 〈살아있는 시체들의 밤〉과 〈시체들의 새벽〉을 중심으로 Zombies, the Subversive Self-Reflexiveness of the Western Culture in George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead
Zombies have enjoyed a popularity and longevity afforded to few other subgenres of horror in the Western culture. The living dead are a device to criticize real-world social ills, such as government ineptitude, racism, slavery, greed and exploitation, while indulging our post-apocalyptic fantasies. ...
Zombies have enjoyed a popularity and longevity afforded to few other subgenres of horror in the Western culture. The living dead are a device to criticize real-world social ills, such as government ineptitude, racism, slavery, greed and exploitation, while indulging our post-apocalyptic fantasies. George A. Romero directed the black-and-white Night of the Living Dead in 1968, which turned zombies into metaphors for social decays and shifted them into the focal point of horror films. The film dramatizes the bewildering and uncanny transformation of human beings into the living dead. It also unsettles the audience through its focus on the taboo subject of cannibalism. Film historian Robin Wood sees the flesh-eating scenes of Night of the Living Dead as a late-1960s critique of American capitalism. Some critics say zombies reflect the return of the repressed. In this regard, zombies represent the younger generation of Americans in the late 1960s who wanted to overthrow traditions and replace them with a new social order. Romero explained that his movies are about revolution in the broadest sense in which a new society replaces the old and devours it. Night of the Living Dead is a horror film where all classical conventions have been cut out. The lead role of Ben was played by Duane Jones, an unknown black actor. Even the idea of a black hero at the time was something new and revolutionary. The surprising death of Ben at the end of the film offered audiences an uncomfortable, nihilistic feeling unusual for the genre. Dawn of the Dead, Romero’s second zombie film, is a satire on consumerism. In 1974, Romero was invited by his friend Mark Mason to visit the Monroeville Mall, which Mason’s company managed. That is where the idea of the film came from. A shopping mall is a quintessential suburban American symbol. In this movie, even the zombies can’t forget habits they had before dying. They wander aimlessly inside the mall just because they remember the place as an important part of their lives. They are the consumer zombies. As Peter says, “They are us.” Romero’s two films have had much influence on later zombie films. Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Dead relates directly to the plots of Romero’s zombie films and the title is also both an obvious parody of and homage to the title Dawn of the Dead. The black-humored film, a so-called rom-zom-com, also brings a distinctive Englishness to the genre. Wright tries to deconstruct the traditional dichotomy between human beings and zombies by making zombies live with human beings as well as by making his characters imitate zombies in his film. Romero has been working outside of the Hollywood studio system for his entire career. He chose zombies to criticize the social ills and the abuse of power in the Western societies. They are regularly encountered in horror and fantasy themed fiction and entertainment as a symbol of subversion and resistance against the social decay of the modern society.
Zombies have enjoyed a popularity and longevity afforded to few other subgenres of horror in the Western culture. The living dead are a device to criticize real-world social ills, such as government ineptitude, racism, slavery, greed and exploitation, while indulging our post-apocalyptic fantasies. George A. Romero directed the black-and-white Night of the Living Dead in 1968, which turned zombies into metaphors for social decays and shifted them into the focal point of horror films. The film dramatizes the bewildering and uncanny transformation of human beings into the living dead. It also unsettles the audience through its focus on the taboo subject of cannibalism. Film historian Robin Wood sees the flesh-eating scenes of Night of the Living Dead as a late-1960s critique of American capitalism. Some critics say zombies reflect the return of the repressed. In this regard, zombies represent the younger generation of Americans in the late 1960s who wanted to overthrow traditions and replace them with a new social order. Romero explained that his movies are about revolution in the broadest sense in which a new society replaces the old and devours it. Night of the Living Dead is a horror film where all classical conventions have been cut out. The lead role of Ben was played by Duane Jones, an unknown black actor. Even the idea of a black hero at the time was something new and revolutionary. The surprising death of Ben at the end of the film offered audiences an uncomfortable, nihilistic feeling unusual for the genre. Dawn of the Dead, Romero’s second zombie film, is a satire on consumerism. In 1974, Romero was invited by his friend Mark Mason to visit the Monroeville Mall, which Mason’s company managed. That is where the idea of the film came from. A shopping mall is a quintessential suburban American symbol. In this movie, even the zombies can’t forget habits they had before dying. They wander aimlessly inside the mall just because they remember the place as an important part of their lives. They are the consumer zombies. As Peter says, “They are us.” Romero’s two films have had much influence on later zombie films. Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Dead relates directly to the plots of Romero’s zombie films and the title is also both an obvious parody of and homage to the title Dawn of the Dead. The black-humored film, a so-called rom-zom-com, also brings a distinctive Englishness to the genre. Wright tries to deconstruct the traditional dichotomy between human beings and zombies by making zombies live with human beings as well as by making his characters imitate zombies in his film. Romero has been working outside of the Hollywood studio system for his entire career. He chose zombies to criticize the social ills and the abuse of power in the Western societies. They are regularly encountered in horror and fantasy themed fiction and entertainment as a symbol of subversion and resistance against the social decay of the modern society.
※ AI-Helper는 부적절한 답변을 할 수 있습니다.